Little did I know how creative everyone would be and how difficult it would be to pick a winner. After a lot of hair-pulling, I was finally able to get down to my top five. And finally down to just one.

But before I announce the winner, I wanted to share my top 5 and tell you why each was one of my favorites.

Comment #1 by Michelle Hartz
Why I liked it: Because she did her research.

I've been thinking about signing up for the monthly subscription for a while!

The reason is silly but true: My favorite actor is Gideon Emery.

He's mostly known for his voice acting, particularly in video games. (Battlefield 3, Dragon Age 2, Final Fantasy XII, Skyrim, etc.)

His voice is exceptional. I could listen to this man read the phonebook. Since the phonebook's not on Audible, I can satisfy myself with The Genesis Secret, Kiteworld, Size Matters Not (Warwick Davis' autobiography), and more.

Add Neil Gaiman's works to my list, and 3 months won't be enough. But it'll be a start.

Comment #5 by Pamela Rose
Why I liked it: Because Audible is perfect for the car and because she made me laugh.

We travel long distances when we get work. Would be great to have the time fly by listening to a book! One can only talk about so much during the first hour :-) afterwards there is just silence...hey that can be good also!

Comment #7 by Heather
Why I liked it: Because she never wins anything and it's her birthday.

I'd love to win this one because I have looked at audible.com about a gajillion times trying to decide whether or not I should give it a try! I'm interested in it, but often wonder if I'll use it enough, if they have the books I'd be interested in listening to, or if there are any hidden fees or other catches. Winning a membership would give me the chance to answer all those questions and more with no risk!

Besides...it seems you forgot my birthday. ;)

Fingers, toes and eyes crossed...! Thanks!

Comment #9 by Wendy
Why I liked it: Because she would finally get to "read" those books.

When told to go crazy, I play it as straight as I can: I'm a writer. A poet, no less. I have dozens of unread books by my reading chair, another stack by the bed, more drifting like snow under furniture. I want someone to read to me while a commute to my day jobs. I want someone to read me to sleep. Audible can do all that, and I wouldn't have to marry them.

Comment #10 by George C
Why I liked it: Because he had the most original and funniest submission.

Tornado blew the single-wide into the creek, then the bank repo'd it. Rent-a-center took back the sofa. Daughter ran off with my good-for-nothing #$%^& and took the blind rescue dog with her. Can't get food stamps, apparently because I speak English. And since I'm blind, doing anything at the library other than sleeping and sponge bathing is out. A 3 month subby to Audible would be a blessing, and nobody deserves it more than whoever posts after me. In the meantime, a gimmee-hat would tide me over till my hair grows back. That's cuzza chemo, but I'm outta words. Thank you.

And the winner is...

And the winner is (queue the tense music that goes on for way too long)... Michelle Hartz. Congratulations Michelle! I will be contacting you shortly to get you set up with your free 3 month Audible subscription.

Thank you everyone for contributing. I hope to be able to do a lot more of these types of contests in the future so keep your eyes peeled so you don't miss out!

The Samsung Galaxy Nexus is a gorgeous phone with a lot of nice features but the changes introduced with the new Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich interface make it hard for me to like this phone. See my video review to see why this may or may not be an issue with you.

Techie stuff:

Manufacturer:	Samsung
OS:	Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich)
Dimensions:	5.33" x 2.67" x 0.35" (135.5 x 67.94 x 8.94 mm)
Weight:	4.76 oz (135 g)
Network:	4G LTE
Processor:	1.2GHz Dual-Core Processor
Memory:	1GB
Internal storage:	32GB
Storage expansion:	None
Display:	4.65", 720 x 1280 pixels, Super AMOLED
Camera:	5 megapixels
Flash:	LED
Front-facing camera:	1.3 megapixels
Camcorder:	1920x1080 (1080p HD) (30 fps)
HDMI:	via micro USB

Video Review:

If you can not see the embedded video above please use the following link: Samsung Galaxy Nexus and Ice Cream Sandwich not a good mix

• Garlic mash. That's gonna come back to haunt me. 6 Feb
  
  
• One of my favorite Super Bowl commercials from last night. http://youtu.be/yn3mktl30iw What was yours? 6 Feb
  
  
• Whew, that was close. Congrats to the Giants! 5 Feb
  
  
• Finally Madonna is actually singing #likeaprayer 5 Feb
  
  
• Madonna lip syncing. Color me disappointed. 5 Feb
  
  
• Re: the Teleflora commercial, now that was much better! 5 Feb
  
  
• Re: the David Beckham commercial, I think I just threw up a little in my mouth. 5 Feb
  
  
• I unlocked the Super Bowl XLVI sticker on @GetGlue! @SNFonNBC #SB46 http://bit.ly/z0PE7a 5 Feb
  
  
• I'm watching Super Bowl XLVI (15924 others checked-in) http://bit.ly/qLTsiP @GetGlue @SNFonNBC 5 Feb
  
  
• You heard it here first. My prediction for Super Bowl XLVI. http://youtu.be/LCv8Dph8_MM 5 Feb
  
  
• Happy 15th Birthday to my dog, Lambeau! Today he gets an ice cream cone just like he did in this video 2 yrs ago http://youtu.be/LyfAq1gHKpo 4 Feb
  
  
• Lots of people posting pictures of their Super Bowl tickets where the bar code is clearly displayed. Wouldn't catch me doing that! 3 Feb
  
  
• All of you bummed about Punxsutawney Phil, listen up. Jimmy the Groundhog did not see his shadow. Early spring for Jimmy believers! 2 Feb
  
  
• On my way downtown for the NFL Experience. Can't wait! 1 Feb
  
  

These same types of people used to try and convince us that Bill Gates was giving away free trips to Disney World. But I guess that's not edgy and current enough any more so now it's Mark Zuckerberg's turn.

Please listen to me. Mark Zuckerberg is not giving away free iPhones or iPads. And his email address is not aistrollo@hotmail.com. Sorry.

Mark the email as spam, delete it or ignore it. Clicking the link in the email will only get you into trouble.

If you can not see the embedded video above please use the following link: Join me and together we can bring order to the Internet!

So, it's time for me to ask? What do you think of the videos? Do you like them? Do they make you laugh? On a grading scale of A, B, C, D and F, what would your average grade for my videos be?

If you need a little memory refresher, I'm embedding and providing links for all four videos below.

Meanwhile, here's some things I'm still working on improving:

• The audio quality. I've ordered a wireless mic set that should arrive next week. I hope this makes a tremendous difference in the sound quality.
  
  
• The backdrop. When the time is right and I find the right space, I hope to replace the bland green wall behind me with a nice white backdrop.
  
  
• The lighting. Lighting is all over the map in my videos mainly because I shoot at different times of the day. Again, my hope is to have my own mini studio complete with soft umbrella lighting. Baby steps.
  
  
• The name of the show. I'm thinking about changing the name of the show to "The Lighter Side of Tech". What do you think? Do you like this name better than the current "Weekly Wrap-up with Mr. Noobie™" name?
  
  
• The video titles. I've stopped using "Weekly Wrap-up with Mr. Noobie™" for the video titles and started using an extracted phrase from the video in order to catch more people's attention.
  
  

I would love to hear any and all of your feedback. Please leave a comment below and tell me what you think and give me an A, B, C, D or F grade. Or maybe somewhere in between two grades. Your comments will help make next month's videos even better. Thank you!

Weekly Wrap-Up with Mr. Noobie 01-06-12

If you can not see the embedded video above please use the following link: Weekly Wrap-Up with Mr. Noobie 01-06-12

Weekly Wrap-Up with Mr. Noobie 01-13-12

If you can not see the embedded video above please use the following link: Weekly Wrap-Up with Mr. Noobie 01-13-12

Weekly Wrap-Up with Mr. Noobie 01-20-12

If you can not see the embedded video above please use the following link: Weekly Wrap-Up with Mr. Noobie 01-20-12

Help! I've fallen and I can't get app!

If you can not see the embedded video above please use the following link: Help! I've fallen and I can't get app!

Others often agree with me and share their own unique uses for their tablet. But none of these stories may be as unique as the one I just read from Michelle Gilbert, the woman from Verizon Wireless who supplies to me all of those wonderful Verizon smart phones and tablets I get to test.

Michelle used her table to save her family from lice. Yes, you heard me right. Lice.

You can read the full story here.

So now I have to throw down a challenge. Can anyone one-up this story with their own unique use of their tablet? Tell me your story by leaving a comment below.

• When did "Moves Like Mick Jagger" become just "Moves Like Jagger?" Did Mick Jagger sue Maroon 5 or something? 30 Jan
  
  
• My son just asked me why the cheerleaders in the Pro Bowl roll up their uniforms. All I could come up with is "because it's hot outside?" 29 Jan
  
  
• Time is running out to win Noobie's 4 VIP-Any Day-Any Time tickets to the NFL Experience! See link for details. ow.ly/8IO0K 29 Jan
  
  
• Noobie is giving away 4 VIP-Any Day-Any Time tickets to the NFL Experience! Follow the link to see how you can win. ow.ly/8INP0 28 Jan
  
  
• My sons and I are having a Temple Run tournament. Highest score without using Angel Wings. #difficult 28 Jan
  
  
• I think he's from the Matrix! youtu.be/pjyfMCTAqKU 27 Jan
  
  
• I was just jamming in my car to the 80s on 8 station until halfway through a song I realized I was singing "It's Raining Men" 27 Jan
  
  
• Teach me how to Bucky, teach me teach me how to Bucky! 26 Jan
  
  
• I'm going back to Vegas! Anyone want to come with me? 25 Jan
  
  

If you can not see the embedded video above please use the following link: Funniest Commercial Ever! Adobe Photoshop Makeup Parody

If you can not see the embedded video above please use the following link: Help! I've fallen and I can't get app!

Here's what you need to do to be eligible to win:

1. Live in the Indianapolis area. There's no point in winning these tickets if you can't use them.

2. Leave a comment on this blog post letting me know your prediction of who will win Super Bowl XLVI—the New York Giants or the New England Patriots.

That's it!

All comments must be left by 11:59 pm ET on Sunday, January 29, 2012 (that's this Sunday!)

NOTE: IF YOU DO NOT LIVE IN THE INDIANAPOLIS AREA YOU ARE NOT ELIGIBLE TO WIN (SORRY!). IF A CHOSEN WINNER DOES NOT MEET THIS REQUIREMENT, HE/SHE WILL FORFEIT THE TICKETS AND A NEW WINNER WILL BE CHOSEN.

I will randomly draw a name from all of the comments received and award that person all 4 tickets. Tickets can be picked up in person or mailed to you, depending on how quickly you need them (you need to go before Super Bowl Sunday!)

This is a unique opportunity in Indianapolis and a great family event for any football fan. Good luck!

If you can not see the embedded video above please use the following link: NFL Experience Promo

But a few days ago, my dad forwarded an email to me with a bunch of cartoon illustrations depicting how life was before vs. how it is now. And as much as I think technology is great, you have to just sit back and laugh at the humor of what it has really done to us.

The email had seven illustrations in it but I hand-picked my favorite three. Hope you enjoy them as much as I did!

These illustrations are all copyright of their respective owners.

ANSWER: I'm going to assume when you talk about bookmarks for your desktop computer that you want to share your bookmarks on any computer you happen to use. If this is not the case, you can accomplish what you want by simply using the favorites feature available in most browsers.

Here are instructions on how to do this using the Internet Explorer browser: What are Internet Explorer favorites?

If you are using Firefox, Chrome or another browser, just do a Google search for "how to add a favorite" or "how to add a bookmark" followed by the name of your browser.

A better way

The above method works great but only if you are always at the same computer. But what if you want access to your bookmarks (favorites) from another computer?

You could use a social bookmarking site like Delicious, but I've found that these are often more difficult to use than what most people really want.

The solution I would recommend (and that I use) is called Google Bookmarks. With Google Bookmarks, all of your bookmarks are stored in the cloud (fancy way to say on the Internet). So if you want to access your Google bookmarks, all you need to do is log on to your Google account from whatever computer you want.

The only thing required is for you to have a Google account, which you can get for free. Just look for the Sign up for a new Google Account link on the Google Bookmarks page I linked to above.

Do you have a question for Mr. Noobie™? Submit your question here.

• Want to win 3 months of membership to http://Audible.com for free from Noobie? Click for details --> http://ow.ly/8CHYZ 23 Jan
  
  
• Congrats to the Giants. Should be a great Super Bowl. Guess now it's time to prepare for stormageddon. 22 Jan
  
  
• If Kyle Williams is looking for a drinking partner tonight, Billy Cundiff is probably available. 22 Jan
  
  
• I am stunned that big companies are still airing commercials in a 4:3 aspect ratio. C'mon Chevrolet! 22 Jan
  
  
• I got 3,011,978 points while escaping from demon monkeys in Temple Run. Beat that! http://bit.ly/TempleRunGame 22 Jan
  
  
• From armchair central: I would have kicked the field goal. #ravens 22 Jan
  
  
• I know everyone is watching the Pats/Ravens game but I just wanted to give a shout-out to the Badgers on their quality road win today. 22 Jan
  
  
• I want to put more emphasis on the "f" in Life of Bankers Life Fieldhouse so I can refer to it as the BFF. 22 Jan
  
  
• Hardest achievement EVER! But I got it! The "Spartan" in Temple Run. If you play, you know what I'm talking about. 21 Jan
  
  
• Fun night of volleyball with our church league. Lost 2, won 1 but good time had by all. 21 Jan
  
  
• My newest pet peeve: Getting an itch somewhere on my body in the middle of a great run in Temple Run. 21 Jan
  
  
• Great day of basketball. My 8yo's team came back from a 12-0 deficit to win 21-18 & my 10yo had 8 pts, 6 reb and 1 steal in his team's win. 21 Jan
  
  
• Never realized it until now that Center Grove's fight song is On Wisconsin. Must be fate. 20 Jan
  
  
• This may be an ignorant question but why are all of the flags at half mast? 20 Jan
  
  
• "Does anyone know how to post videos to Facebook?" 19 Jan
  
  
• What to do when it is 28 degrees outside with 10 minutes before the school bus arrives? 1-on-1 basketball in the driveway of course! Brrrrr 19 Jan
  
  
• I unlocked the American Idol: Savannah sticker on @GetGlue! http://bit.ly/yopedc 18 Jan
  
  
• I'm watching American Idol (7454 others checked-in) http://bit.ly/qLTsiP @GetGlue @AmericanIdol 18 Jan
  
  
• And the official Steven Tyler "beautiful" word count has begun. #americanidol 18 Jan
  
  
• OMG, Groupon Goods is selling the Shake Weight. 18 Jan
  
  
• Verizon has nearly 400 indoor antennas installed at Lucas Oil Stadium to handle 3-4 times the traffic of a normal game. 18 Jan
  
  
• Looking out at the field from the Lucas Oil Stadium press box. Wish I could share a picture but I'm not allowed to. 18 Jan
  
  
• All of the equipment Verizon is bringing in for the Super Bowl will stay here permanently. Awesome! 18 Jan
  
  
• At the Indiana Convention Center waiting on a Verizon "back stage" tour for the Super Bowl to begin. 18 Jan
  
  
• I wish Google would add a "save" button to their documents and spreadsheets. I know it auto-saves but it's unsettling to just close it. 18 Jan
  
  
• I must have done something right tonight because my wife bought me Chunky Monkey ice cream! 17 Jan
  
  

I shot some video during the tour and have edited it down the best I could to about four and a half minutes. But I'll warn you, this video is not for noobies. Quite the opposite, it's quite techie in nature.

But there are some fun facts anyone can pull from the video. Like the fact that all of the infrastructure put in place for the Super Bowl will remain permanently, which will be great for future events like the Big Ten Championship and the Final Four.

And pay attention to the number of inside antennas and Wi-Fi capacity. Both of those numbers blew me away.

If you can not see the embedded video above please use the following link: For techies only! Verizon Wireless 4G LTE Super Bowl Network Tour

If you can not see the embedded video above please use the following link: Weekly Wrap-Up with Mr. Noobie 01-20-12

Well guess what? That friend is going to be one of you. All you need to do is follow the simple rules below to be eligible.

What is Audible?

But first, if you've never heard of Audible, here's a quick refresher. Audible.com is a website that sells audiobooks in digital format (not CDs or tapes). You can buy audiobooks a la carte but, in my opinion, the best deal is the gold membership which allows you to purchase one audiobook (at any price) per month for $15/month.

You can then download your purchased audiobooks to listen to them on your computer, your iPod or pretty much any digital music device. I listen to them on my Android phone using the free Audible app.

How you can win a free 3-month subscription to Audible

Ok, back to the contest. Here's what you need to do to be eligible to win. Just leave a comment below on this blog post and tell me in 100 words or less why you should win the free 3-month Audible subscription. Be creative. Be funny. Be ridiculous. That's all there is to it. I'll pick from among all of the comments the one who I think stands out the most.

By the way, according to what I read on Audible's website, your free 3-month subscription will NOT automatically renew at the end of the 3 months so you shouldn't have to worry about getting suckered into paying for additional months if you don't want them.

And just to be safe, you might want to read the full gift terms on Audible's website.

The deadline for this contest is 11:59 pm ET on Friday, February 3rd so make sure you post your comment before then. Good luck!

What is Pinterest?

You can compare Pinterest to a virtual scrapbook, a bulletin board or a filing system. Users “pin” images or videos of their favorite things onto boards labeled with categories. Choose your own board categories or start with those suggested by Pinterest. Pinned images usually originate from blogs or other websites, and they automatically link back to the source.

Pinterest features a wide range of content, but the predominantly female members tend to share food or recipes, fashion, home décor and crafts.

Follow and Share with Friends

Follow some cool, creative, crafty or curatorial friends, and their pins may be enough to keep you busy on Pinterest. If you see something you like or something you want to find again later, you can “repin” it to one of your personal boards. Whatever you pin also will show up for the friends who follow you so they can see the things you find pin-worthy.

Become a Curator

If you are shopping or browsing the Web, Pinterest makes it easy to keep track of your favorite things. You can add a “Pin It” option to your browser, which lets you instantly pin any picture or image you find online. Add a description so you can remember how the image inspired you or to give your followers more information about the item or idea.

Request an Invitation to Pinterest

A noobie who visits Pinterest may get a little confused and overwhelmed—or instantly obsessed. You’ll see a page filled with images and notes representing everything everybody has pinned. Look around and view broad categories like Art, Food and Drink, and Education. To get the full experience, including the ability to interact with friends and followers, you’ll need to request an invitation.

You can request an invitation from Pinterest directly, which may take a week or more, or you can ask for one from a friend (or from Noobie by clicking here) who is already active on Pinterest. There’s really no magic to the invitation itself, but the demand for invitations has generated a lot of buzz for Pinterest on Twitter, Facebook, blogs and beyond.

Choose How You Login to Pinterest

Pinterest gives you the option of logging in with your email address and a password or using your existing Facebook or Twitter accounts to login. There are benefits and drawbacks to logging in with Twitter or Facebook. Using an existing account will help you instantly connect with people you know. However, you’ll first have to give Pinterest permission to access your Facebook and Twitter account activity and information. Pinterest even warns that it will post status messages and send tweets for you.

Pinterest on the Go

Whether you’ve received an invitation or not you can use the Pinterest iPhone app to browse on the go.

Once you’ve joined, Pinterest on your iPhone lets you take pictures with your phone’s camera, mark them with your current location and pin them directly to one of your boards. Imagine the possibilities—cool billboards, coveted merchandise, crazily clad people and anything else that catches your eye—wherever you are.

As the video description states, it's "a 6 week journey of a lifetime crammed into one epic minute."

If you can not see the embedded video above please use the following link: MOVE - STA Travel Australia

• At least the Badgers won, although barely. Even so, I think I watched the wrong game. 15 Jan
  
  
• On the bright side, Rodgers can now play in the Pro Bowl in two weeks. 15 Jan
  
  
• That's ball game folks. #toomanyfumbles 15 Jan
  
  
• Flipping a coin to see if I will watch the second half of this game. 15 Jan
  
  
• Kuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuhn! (even though I don't feel proud of this drive) 15 Jan
  
  
• Wow, that was a gift. Should have been Giants ball. 15 Jan
  
  
• You'll get 'em next time Aaron, don't worry. 15 Jan
  
  
• I'm watching Green Bay Packers (171 others checked-in) http://bit.ly/qLTsiP @GetGlue #GreenBayPackers 15 Jan
  
  
• Horrible play call for Houston on 4th and 2. They had plenty of time left. 15 Jan
  
  
• I am giddy with excitement for the Packers game to start. I hope I'm equally as giddy for the NFC championship game next weekend! 15 Jan
  
  
• Just watched a 10-year-old sink a clutch 3 pointer at the buzzer to send the game into overtime. Wow. 14 Jan
  
  
• I have zero interest in the Houston / Baltimore game. Every game after it though is a must-see. 14 Jan
  
  
• Wisconsin just made me feel a LOT better about that 3-game losing streak. Purdue's home winning streak: 0 games :) 12 Jan
  
  
• I'm watching Wisconsin Badgers http://bit.ly/qLTsiP @GetGlue #WisconsinBadgers 12 Jan
  
  
• Holy cold, freezing wind Batman! 12 Jan
  
  
• If anyone reading this is a student at Indiana University, I need your help ASAP. Please reply or message me for more info. 12 Jan
  
  
• I am so addicted to the Temple Run game I can't stand it. Call for help. 11 Jan
  
  
• Loving the new DIRECTV high definition interface. Well done. 11 Jan
  
  
• Sing it sister! RT @sallyhogshead: The greatest value you can add is to become more of yourself. 11 Jan
  
  
• I still haven't gotten used to the new YouTube favicon. Is gotten a word? 11 Jan